Canada's Navneet Dhaliwal to retire from international cricket

Former Canada captain Navneet Dhaliwal will retire from international cricket after his team's final game in this T20 World Cup, against Afghanistan in Chennai on Thursday. The 37-year-old batter announced his decision after Canada's defeat against New Zealand, which knocked them out of contention for the Super Eight.

"I took the decision before I came here [for the World Cup]. I've been playing for more than 12 [11] years now," Dhaliwal said. "So it was planned and this is going to be my last match."

Dhaliwal is set to finish as Canada's highest run-getter in T20Is. During his international career which began in 2015, he captained Canada in 29 T20Is and four ODIs. Under his captaincy, Canada won 21 matches, all in T20Is. He counts the leadership stint and top-scoring for Canada with 61 off 44 balls in their first-ever T20 World Cup game among his career highlights.

"Yeah, the best memory was when we first qualified for the [2024 T20] World Cup," Dhaliwal said. "After that, I scored in the opening game of the World Cup last time. Also when I became a captain, that was a proud moment for me. So yeah, those few [memorable] moments."

After ending his playing career on Thursday, Dhaliwal plans to foray into coaching at the grassroots level and give back to Canada cricket.

"I'm thinking of coaching but not on a national level," he said. "My priority would be the youngsters. That's something that would give me happiness. It's hard to leave cricket right away and once cricket is in your blood, it's very hard to stop playing. So, my next goal is to help the youngsters to take the next step."

One of Canada's most promising youngsters, Yuvraj Samra, has already captured global attention by hitting a 58-ball century against New Zealand. At 19 years and 141 days, he became the youngest player ever to score a hundred in a men's World Cup (T20 or ODI) game. He also became the first player from an Associate nation to hit a century at the men's T20 World Cup.

"You see what Yuvraj Samra did," Dhaliwal said. "Scoring a hundred against New Zealand, which is one of the best sides in the world. And he is someone who was born in Canada, where it's not easy to learn cricket. I think we still have a background of India. We played cricket here.

"We have that basic foundation of cricket and skills. But he lacked that. But the way he played, you can see how cricket is growing now. So, [I'm] very happy."

The Global T20 Canada and the Canada 60 leagues have given local talents a chance to mingle with international stars, which is crucial for their development, according to Dhaliwal. Before playing his maiden World Cup, Samra, for instance, had rubbed shoulders with the likes of Usman Khawaja, Martin Guptill and James Vince.

"Playing with stars in GT20 Canada and Super 60 helps big time," Dhaliwal said. "So, all the players, especially youngsters, learn the game better. "If you come straight to this big podium, and you haven't met any of these big stars, you get lost. So in that scenario, it helps a lot."